Differential effects of thiols on DNA modifications via alkylation and Michael addition by alpha-acetoxy-N-nitrosopyrrolidine.

The hepatocarcinogen NPYR is metabolically activated by alpha-hydroxylation mediated by cytochrome P-450 enzymes to yield a 4-oxobutylating agent and 2-butenal (crotonaldehyde). Both are reactive intermediates capable of modifying DNA with guanine either by simple alkylation or by Michael type addition, respectively. In order to assess the roles of these pathways in NPYR tumorigenesis, we are interested in identifying agents which can selectively modify one of these two pathways. In this study, we examined the effects of three thiols--(mesna), glutathione (Glu), and N-acetylcysteine (Nac)--on DNA adduct formation by alpha-acetoxyNPYR, a stable precursor of alpha-hydroxyNPYR. Calf thymus DNA isolated from incubation of alpha-acetoxyNPYR with or without thiol was hydrolyzed and analyzed for the adducts formed by alkylation (adducts 1 and 2) and Michael addition (adducts 3-5). The results showed that the addition of mesna completely blocked the formation of the crotonaldehyde-derived adducts 3-5, whereas it exerted little effect on the formation of the alkylated adducts 1 and 2. These results indicate the preferential conjugation of mesna with crotonaldehyde. In contrast, Nac had little selectivity on adduct formation; levels of adducts 1 to 5 were were reduced by 36-75%. These results suggest that Nac conjugated with both alkylating agent and crotonaldehyde. Similar to mesna, Glu blocked the formation of the crotonaldehyde-derived adducts (adducts 3-5) efficiently. However, unlike mesna, Glu inhibited the formation of adduct 1, while it did not inhibit the formation of adduct 2, although both adducts are presumably derived from the 4-oxobutylating agent.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)